Attack of the Imitators
February 1st, 2008Man, the amount of total crap on the Wii is truly amazing. Sure, you have publishers like Conspiracy Entertainment that release nearly a dozen shovelware products to turn a quick buck, but that’s not even the half of it.
Just now I searched for Endless Ocean on Amazon, and not only did it bring up that game, but just below it with similar cover art was “Sea Monsters: A Prehistoric Adventure”. Not only that, they were undercutting the price of Endless Ocean by $1 (at $28.99). I mean, why just go diving when you can BE a sea monster… and for a dollar less to boot!
Now, obviously the games are a bit different, as Sea Monsters (according to the description) lets you play as “Six different sea monsters”, but does this not seem like a cheap imitation to anyone else?
And the Wii (and DS for that matter) are just full of these kinds of imitations. Because of the success of Nintendogs, the Wii has both “Petz Dogz 2″ and “Puppy Luv”, as well as “Petz Catz 2″ and “Kitty Luv”, not to mention “Petz Horsez 2″ and “My Horse and Me.” The success of Wii Sports, Wii Play, and Mario Party have brought us such gems as Carnival Games, EA Playground, and perhaps the best name for a game ever, Game Party (it’s sequel, likely to be called “Party Game”, is also highly anticipated).
What is wrong with this picture? Suddenly the Wii library is looking like a PC bargain bins, where all you find is a bunch of second-rate hunting, card, and casino games, only the Wii also has pet simulators, party/mini game compilations, licensed crap, and other trash. Are people actually buying this stuff?
I guess in some ways, since I’ll never buy any of this stuff, I don’t really care that much except that it’s kind of scary to walk into the Wii aisle at Circuit City only to find a sea of trashy games you’ve never heard of. On the other hand, if people actually buy this crap, this will probably be mostly the kind of games we see on the Wii during its lifetime. If that’s the fate the Wii is doomed to I’m afraid it’ll receive less and less attention from me as time goes on. And if this is a trend that Nintendo is happy with, it’s quite possible that the Wii will be the last Nintendo console I own.
Does anyone else remember the Nintendo that promised “Quality over Quantity”? Maybe they really should consider this again.
Posted in Commentary, Jeff, Nintendo, Wii |
February 1st, 2008 at 2:03 pm
I’m not sure I’d like any of these
February 1st, 2008 at 4:25 pm
You know what’s funny?
Your lame ass fanboy attempt at trying to discredit the top-selling, best console on the planet.
The reason why “it is scary to walk into the Wii aisle” for you is because you cannot see a whole lot of the lame ass FPSs that are a dime a dozen these days.
You also cannot see a lot of military games, games which I’m sure are your favorite. These games are popular in societies that are in decline, because if war is on the minds of the citizenry, then it has lost its sanity and compassion.
Japan on the other hand has citizens that do not ejaculate over war and death, they play video GAMES for FUN.
This fun factor is why the Wii has made the market bigger, it has reached families and other folks who would not have otherwise played video games because PS3 and Xbox360 are nothing but car racing, military shooters, war games, killing people, blood, guts, and other forms of entertainment that reflect a society in decline.
I have been to Japan, and the reason the Wii is so popular is because it is a HAPPY console, it is a console that brings friends together NOT for the purpose of killing each other, but to have fun together.
You can keep whining about how the Wii is kicking the asses of the other two evil consoles, but the world is rejecting the military industrial complex and war mongering brought about by the US, and are turning to games to have fun, not to mimic and replay the death and destruction that goes on in real life.
The US is finished.
February 1st, 2008 at 7:02 pm
omg japan kawaii desu ^____________^
Jesus, shut the hell up.
February 1st, 2008 at 8:10 pm
Private Freedom-
With all due respect, who’s the fanboy here? This has to be the first time someone has defended the Wii by… claiming owners of other consoles are war-mongerers?
Regular readers to our site know that we don’t shy away from criticizing any of the consoles. We’re not the only ones to note how much trash comes out for the Wii. The good news is that there are also some great games, like Mario Galaxy, Metroid Prime, Elebits, Zack and Wiki, and others.
In any case, this has to be one of the strangest responses I’ve ever seen. I’m not even sure how to respond, but I will say that the Wii has sold more units in the US than in any other individual region. So, I guess according to your wacky theory the US should be the most “enlightened” country, huh?
February 2nd, 2008 at 9:58 am
I simply do not understand the rabid obsession that causes people like Private Freedom to automatically lash out at anyone who expresses dissatisfaction. I have and play every recent major console except for the PS3, including the DS, and mostly I like them all. Some of my favorite games are the silly, fun, weird ones, especially on the DS. It’s possible to enjoy plenty of games that aren’t shooters and still be dissatisfied with the Wii library — there are only a few Wii games that I think are worth the price of admission. I hated one of the Wii’s most famous shooters, Metroid Prime 3, and sold it back to Gamestop. Every single criticism leveled by PF reflect his own fanboy tendencies, not those of others.
February 2nd, 2008 at 5:14 pm
YESSSSSSSSS
FX-1 MIIIIISSSSSEEDD YOOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU